Combined tank and heater.



No. 744,943. PATENTED NOV. 24, 1903.

G. THOMPSON.

COMBINED TANK AND HEATER. APPLICATION FILEDMAR. 16, 1903.

H0 MODEL.

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Patented November 24:, 1903.

GEORGE THOMPSON, OF LAOEY, IOWA.

COMBINED TANK AND HEATER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 744,943, dated November 24 1903.

Application iiledMarch 16,1903. Serial No. 148.095.

170 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE THOMPSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lacey, in the county of Mahaska and State of Iowa, have invented a new and useful Combined Tank and Heater, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to combined tanks and heaters; and it has special reference to an improved heating apparatus constructed and used in connection with tanks that are molded of concrete or some plastic material, the object of my invention being to provide a combined tank and heater which shall possess superior advantages in point of simplicity, durability, and general efficiency.

\Vith these and other ends in view my invention consists in certain improvements in the construction, arrangement, and combination of the parts constituting my improved combined tank and heating device, which will be hereinafter fully described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a front view of a concrete tank constructed with a heating device in accordance with the principles of my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional View taken longitudinally through the heating apparatus and through a portion of the tank on the plane indicated by the line 2 2 in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 3 3 in Fig. 2.

l designates a tank which is preferably rectangular in shape, although it may be made circular, oval, elliptical, or of any other desired shape and conformation, and which is constructed by molding it in any suitable well-known manner from concrete or other plastic material which shall be adapted to the purposes of my invention. This tank may be of any suitable dimensions, and as regards the method of its construction I do not limit myself in any particular. In the construction of the tank, however, I form adjacent to one of the walls thereof, in this case designated as the front wall 2, a chamber 3, the bottom of which, 4, is preferably sunk slightly below the bottom 5 of the tank proper, and which comprises the side walls 6 6, rear or end wall 7, and a top 8, which is preferably arched, as will be seen clearly in Fig. 3 of the drawings.

(N0 model.)

A step 9 is also preferably formed at the front end of said chamber, and the side walls of the latter are provided on their inner sides with ledges or offsets 10. (Clearly shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings.) This chamber, which constitutes the body of the heating device, is provided in the top 8 thereof with an opening 11, in which is fitted a cast-iron pipe 12, extending slightly above the level of the tank, as will be best seen in Fig. 1, and may be employed as a means of attachment for ordinary stovepipe, of which any desired number of joints may be added to provide sufficient draft. The lower edge of the pipe 12 has a flange 13, which is carefully embedded in the concrete or other plastic material, as will be seen in Fig. 2, so as to secure it firmly in position in such a manner as to absolutely prevent leakage.

The walls of the heating-chamber and, if desired, the front wall of the tank are provided adjacent to the opening at the front end of said heatingchamber with bolts 14, the heads of which are embedded in the concrete, as will be clearly seen in Fig. 2, and the screwthreaded points of which project,-so as to serve for the attachment of a cast-iron frame 15, having suitably-disposed perforations to engage the said bolts, which latter, as will be readily understood, are so firmly embedded in the concrete as to avoid rupture. In this manner the front frame 15 may be firmly secured to the tank in such a position as to form or constitute the front of the heater without the slightest danger of leakage, inasmuch as the concrete wall or walls of the tank are not pierced at any point for the passage of the bolts. The latter are also in this manner preserved from injury by rust.

The frame 15 is provided with suitably-disposed doors 16 and 17,through the upper one of which, 16, fuel of any kind may be fed into the combustion chamber, while the lower door 17 affords access to the ash-pit. Said door 17 is also provided with a draft-slide 18.

The shoulders or offsets 10 upon the inner sides of the side walls of the heating or combustion chamber support a suitablyconstructed grate 19, at the front end of which is hinged a deflecting-plate 20, which normally rests upon the cross-piece 2lof the frame 15, which separates between the openings of the doors 16 and 17. The deflector is provided at the edges thereof with downwardly-extending legs 22, which normally rest upon the bot- .tom of the ash-pit. It will be observed that when this deflector is in the position illustrated in full lines in Fig. 2 of the drawings the air entering through the opening provided with the draft-slide 18 is deflected downwardly under the grate between the bars of which the air ascends to sustain and promote combustion. When it shall be ,desired to remove the ashes from the ash-pit, the grate may be elevated to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, and the deflector 20 maybe thrown back to the position likewise illustrated by dotted lines, when the legs or supports 22 will be supported upon the step 9 at the front end of the combustion-chamber,thus permitting access to the ash-pit to be had through the door 17 and between said legs 22, which, being disposed at the edges of the deflector, will not interfere with the insertion of a shovel or other tool for the removal of the ashes.

It will be understood that in a device of the particular class to which my invention relates the deflecting-plate 20 and the legs or supports 22 associated therewith are of especial value. Owing to the constructionof the device, it would be practically impossible to have access to the ash-pit without removing the grate. The latter under usual circumstances would be quite heavy, and even if it were possible to remove and to reinsert it it would be with considerable danger of crumbling and injuring the grate-supporting shoulders of the structure. Moreover, the peculiar disposition of the grate would make it impossible 'to secure a sufficient bottom draft to insure the perfect combustion of the fuel placed upon the grate. By providing the latter with the deflecting-plate 20', having the supporting-legs 22, the said grate may be raised whenever desired to have access to the ash-pit, and it may be lowered without endangering the concrete structure of the combustion-chamber, and especially the grate-supporting shoulders of the latter. The said device also serves to deflect the draft, as hereinbefore set forth, so that the air necessary for the support of combustion will be compelled to enter upwardly between the grate-bars. I

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the drawings hereto annexed, the operation and advantages of my invention will be readily understood. By my invention I am enabled to construct a tank and a heating device for said tank at a cost very heating the contents of the tank. The parts are so constructed and connected that leakage is practically impossible. The parts of the device not constructed of concrete are few in number, simple in construction, and easily provided.

I desire it to be understood that while I have in the foregoing described a simple and preferred construction of my invention I do not necessarily limit myself to the precise structural details herein described, but reserve the right to any changes and modifications within the scope of my invention and which may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing the utility of the same.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- I 1. A concrete tank having a concrete combustion-chamber constructed integrallytherewith, having a bottom sunk below the bottom of the tank and provided with side walls having shoulders or offsets, a draft-door having an air-inlet above the ground, a grate supported upon the shoulders of the side walls, and a deflector hingedly connected with the front end of said grate and extending above the air-inlet of the draft-door.

2. A concrete tank having a concrete combustion-chamber constructedintegrallytherewith and having a bottom sunk below the bottom of the tank and opening through a wall of the tank, a door-framesurrounding said opening, draft and feed doors hingedly connected with said frame, a grate supported above the ash-pit, and a deflector hingedly connected with the front end of said grate and supported above the air-inlet.

3. A concrete tank having a concrete combustion-chamber, the bottom of which. is sunk below the bottom of the tank and provided with a step at its front end, grate-supporting means, a grate, and a deflector hingedly connected with said grate and having supportinglegs normally extending inwardly below the grate.

' 4. A concrete tank having a concrete combustion-chamber constructed integrally therewith, the side walls of said combustion-chamber being provided with'shoulders or offsets, a grate supported upon said shoulders or 0&- sets, and a deflector hingedly connected with said grate and having downwardly-extending supporting-legs.

5. A concrete tank having a concrete combustion-chamberconstructed integrallytherewith, the side walls of said combustion-chamber being provided with shoulders or offsets, a door-frame mounted at the front end of said combustion-chamber and having a transverse bar separating between the upper and lower door-openings, a grate supported upon the shoulders of the side walls, and a deflector hingedly connected with said grate and adapted to rest upon the crossbar of the front frame.

6. A concrete tank having a concrete combustion-chamberconstructedintegrallytherelegs which, when the grate is in an elevated position, may rest upon the step at the front end of the combustion-chamber.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as 15 my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE THOMPSON.

Witnesses:

D. W. SoHooK, EDWARD TROY. 

